medicinal herbsCrispleaf BuckwheatEriogonum corymbosum

Herb: Crispleaf Buckwheat

Latin name: Eriogonum corymbosum

Family: Polygonaceae (Buckwheat Family)

Medicinal use of Crispleaf Buckwheat:

A decoction of the leaves, taken three times a day, is a remedy for headache.

Description of the plant:

Plant:

EvergreenShrub

Height:

30 cm(11 3/4 inch)

Flowering:

July toAugust

Habitat of the herb:

Dry and rocky slopes and ridges.

Edible parts of Crispleaf Buckwheat:

Leaves and stems - cooked. The leaves can be boiled, mixed with water and cornmeal and baked into a bread.

Propagation of the herb:

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a sandy compost in a greenhouse. Sow stored seed in early spring in a warm greenhouse. As soon as they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Division in early spring. This has to be done with care because the plant resents root disturbance. Try to obtain divisions from around the edges of the plants without digging up the whole clump. Tease the divisions out with as much root on them as possible and pot them up. Grow them on in light shade in the greenhouse until they are rooting well and plant them out in the summer. Cuttings of greenwood with a heel in the summer. Cuttings of almost ripe shoots with a heel, July/August in a frame.